The Author, the Text and the Canon
Gadamer and the Persistence of Classic Texts in Sociology
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2404565 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Alan R How (University of Worcester, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2007 |
| Volume | 7 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 5-22 |
| Publication date | 2007-03-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Classical Sociology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1468-795X • E-ISSN: 1741-2897 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/1468795x07073950 |
| OpenAlex | W2165080668 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 5 |
| References cited | 28 |
The role of the classic text in the social sciences has come under fire in recent years. The authority of classics has been challenged on the grounds that they conceal a variety of ideological assumptions, tensions and discontinuities as well as being far removed from our experience of contemporary life. Drawing on Gadamer's account of the 'classical' in Truth and Method, the article contests these views, arguing that classic texts are a source of intellectual vitality and should not be jettisoned. Following the introduction the article divides into two main sections. The first deals with the issue of authorship, arguing that while 'names' remain intrinsic to sociology, attention should remain with the text. The second employs Gadamer's ideas to show why classic texts persist. The claim that subsequent historical horizons elicit from the text truths that continue to resonate is illustrated with Weber's Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism
Aesthetics · Capitalism · Epistemology · Ideology · Politics · Protestant work ethic · Sociology · Theology · Variety (cybernetics · Vitality · Contemporary Sociological Theory and Practice · Emile Durkheim and Sociology · Law · Philosophy · Weber, Simmel, Sociological Theory
Force Fields
Meaning and understanding in the history of ideas
Founders, Classics, Canons
Weber's Protestant Ethic
Modern Criticism and Theory
The Cambridge Companion to Weber
The Historicist Controversy
In Defence of the Sociological Canon
Images of Postmodern Society
Cultural Darwinism" and "Philosophical Idealism" in E. B. Tylor
Hermeneutics, Language and Science
Durkheim's Response to Spencer
Weber, Irrationality, and Social Order
Gadamer, Hermeneutics, Tradition and Reason
The Habermas-Gadamer Debate and the Nature of the Social
Meaning and Understanding in the History of Ideas
The Postmodern Condition
Motives, Intentions and the Interpretation of Texts
Viewpoint
Philosophy and the Mirror of Nature
History and Criticism
A Sociological Guilt Trip
Why Is Classical Theory Classical
How to Become a Dominant French Philosopher
On Understanding a Sociological Classic
| Unique citing works | 5 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,33 |
| Citation span | 2011 - 2020 (10) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 5 |